Telling Tales

A Christmas letter, an open house - both ideal for reflecting back on another year having passed. I was invited to an open house this week. I only knew the person hosting, but people were very willing to chat and listen. It soon became an opportunity for learning, as one lady was struggling to find a present for her son and daughter-in-law. Immediately, others in the room were sharing their suggestions and previous successes with past ideas. A solution was found that satisfied the needs of the lady and I felt warmed by the willingness of strangers to offer their help and advice.

It’s sad to think that there are many who will not have the chance to share their stories of the past year. As adults it seems we forget our love for and even our need for storytelling. A couple of years ago we went up to the Edinburgh Festival and I involved myself in a little project – to interview people that passed me on the street. I had a number of questions designed to allow people, (if they wanted) to share some of their Story with me. I hadn’t expected to be so moved or feel so privileged that people would share their greatest fears, their saddest moments and successes with me, a total stranger. Everyone has a story.  At Christmas when we gather with friends we have not seen for a while and extended family members it seems an ideal time to share some of those stories.

My husband volunteers for a phone help-line and so often the caller just needs someone to listen to their story. We can be so quick to relate a tale to our own lives or offer advice, when most often all that is needed is a listening ear.

In other cultures storytelling is at the heart of community, and I guess we have a sense of this with Nativity plays, pantomimes and our favourite Christmas films but the idea of sharing our own story with one another seems to be lost. I have never celebrated a Thanksgiving, but I like the idea of sharing something that you are thankful for – I wonder if this ever develops from a simple word into little stories of thanksgiving. This year could be the time for a new Christmas tradition – the opportunity for each person you’re with to share something about this last year that is meaningful for them.

At the heart of Christmas is a story. It gets re-told in so many ways that we may feel an over-familiarity with it. These adaptations of the Biblical accounts give us the big picture but I wonder what you would discover if you were to look at the events from the perspective of just one character. What would it have been like to be a shepherd; hearing the message of the angels, being the first to see the baby? How about a wise man – would they have had doubts about where they were going and what they were doing? How would it have felt to be an angel travelling to earth to broadcast the birth of the baby? The innkeeper’s inconvenience, the scandal of Mary’s pregnancy, the commitment of Joseph to protect Mary and Jesus are all aspects that it is easy to gloss over.

This Christmas there is an opportunity; once the presents are unwrapped and the dinner lies heavy in your tummy to be both a storyteller and a listener. Everybody has a story, sometimes they need encouragement to speak it out but often we all gain from hearing about the experiences of others.

There are no questions this week, instead I’m inviting you to share something from this past year that has meant something to you. It may be a challenge you have overcome, something or someone you are thankful for, a success, a sadness – anything that has importance for you.